Take a Hint
by PrincessTadashi
Summary: Ethel Tomago's looking for an escape from her hellish home life. Aiko is looking forward to a fun evening out with her cousins. Two very different stories. One chance meeting that changes everything. HoneyGoGo shipping. (Rating for language and implied family abuse)


So, a good internet friend of mine, DragonFanGirl92801, made the observation to me recently that there isn't near enough cute HoneyGoGo stuff out there, and it got me thinking that I should do something to fix the problem! This fic idea has been rattling around in my brain for a long time, and so I thought I'd finally buckle down and write it! I'm really proud of how it turned out, and I hope you all enjoy it! ^w^ This is for you, imouto!  
(P.S. I tried to make the Spanish in this story as accurate as possible, but I am not a native speaker so please forgive me for any mistakes! I currently have a friend who is much more experienced than I am hopefully looking this over, but if you see anything that needs correcting and would be willing to help me out, it would be greatly appreciated! Thanks! 3)

Trigger Warning: Implied family sexual abuse

0o0

Ethel Tomago walks through the hallways of her house, the volume on her headphones turned way up to drown out the sounds of shouting from the kitchen.

 _Hey, girl, open the walls, play with your dolls. We'll be a perfect family._

"Don't try to lie to me! I saw you with that-that hussy when you were supposed to be out at that 'business dinner'!" her mom's voice echoes past the loud sound of the song pounding in her ears.

 _When you walk away is when we really play. You don't hear me when I say, "Mom, please wake up."_

"She's just a business associate! There is nothing going on between us!" Ethel's father roars back.

 _"Dad's with a slut, and your son is smoking cannabis."_

As Ethel makes her way to her room, she passes her brother's room-her "perfect" older brother, the one who was always at the top of his classes, already on his way to a successful law career-the perfect Korean son. Little did her parents know what he did in his free time, but it wasn't like they'd believe her even if she told them. She'd given up trying to see him as anything other than a flawless china figure, any more than she'd ever been able to get them to see her as anything but a screw up, a failure, a freak.

 _No one ever listens, this wallpaper glistens. Don't let them see what goes down in the kitchen._

The walls of her home were covered in neat, perfectly posed pictures of her family, her parents and all of her five siblings. She was in most of the pictures as well, but usually hidden in the back-she hated being in photographs, and her parents seemed content enough to keep her out of sight so others wouldn't raise questions that might lead to the outside world thinking that their family was anything but perfect.

 _Places, places, get in your places. Throw on your dress and put on your doll faces._

Despite her parents' attempts to reform her, however, she was never going to let them change her. Was her rebellion against them, wearing ripped, ratty clothes to school, mouthing off at every opportunity, putting purple streaks in her hair, a bit much? Maybe. But it was the only way she could feel sane in the middle of all of this.

 _Everyone thinks that we're perfect. Please don't let them look through the curtains._

As soon as Ethel's in the room that she shared with her older sister, she slams the door shut and tosses her backpack into the corner, heading over to her closet to change clothes into something more appropriate for tonight.

 _Picture, picture, smile for the picture. Pose with your brother, won't you be a good sister?_

"Are you sneaking out again tonight?" Ethel's older sister looks at her in disgust as she glances up from her textbooks, watching her younger sibling changing into her nightclub garb-clothes that pushed the limits of just how ripped an outfit could be without actually showing anything, graffitied by brightly colored paint just to add her own personal flare. They were clothes that would horrify her parents if they ever saw her in them, and that's exactly what she was going for.

 _Everyone thinks that we're perfect. Please don't let them look through the curtains._

"Yep." Ethel answers, popping her gum loudly as she finishes getting changed, throwing her backpack back over her shoulders and opening the window to climb out of it. "Don't wait up."

"I never do," her sister answers, not even bothering to look up from her book.

 _D-O-L-L-H-O-U-S-E. I see things that nobody else sees._

Ethel lets out a small grunt as she lands in the grass, taking a moment to recover from the impact before heading off across the yard. She smirks slightly as she looks back at the house she was leaving behind. From the outside, anyone would think that it belonged to a perfect family-a family that they all wanted to be like. The petite woman lets out a tiny snort. If only they knew the truth about the hell it actually was.

 _D-O-L-L-H-O-U-S-E. I see things that nobody else sees._

0o0

"I just wanna have a damn good time, do a flirty little dance with you! Wanna toss my hair, wanna make 'em stare. All the boys go oh oh! Put your hands on my hips baby, _muevelo. La vida es una ven aquí, mueve, muevelo_!"

Aiko sings loudly along to her radio as she dances around her room, getting ready for tonight. She couldn't wait for her _primos_ to arrive so that they could get started on their night of fun! Not that she would ever let her parents know where they were actually taking her-as far as they were concerned, her favorite female cousin, Rosa, was taking her to mass tonight like she supposedly did every Friday night. By this point they probably were beginning to suspect that their daughter was doing something that had nothing to do with nuns and lighting candles, but as long as she came back in one piece and at a reasonable hour, they didn't ask any questions-they trusted their daughter to make good choices, and given this was her only sort of mini-rebellion during her teenage years so far, they'd decided to just let it go.

Aiko hums eagerly along with song on the radio as she puts on a fresh layer of her favorite hot pink lip gloss before checking her reflection in the mirror. Favorite lemon-yellow dress, perfect both for the mass she was supposed to be attending and the nightclub she was actually going to? Check. Matching platform heels? Check. Cute teddy bear shaped purse Rosa had given her for her last birthday? Check. And makeup and hair perfect? Double check! After all the hours of tutorials she'd watched over the years, she was something of an expert, and she was considering starting her own channel to start sharing her own advice and tips with the internet!

Just as she doing one last check of her hair, making sure that the flower clip holding her bun together was in place, she hears the sound of a car horn honking outside, and she eagerly rushes to the door. Rosa was here!

" _Mija, ten cuidado!_ " Aiko's mother called to her as she passes her in the kitchen. "Slow down! You'll break your neck!"

" _Lo siento, mamá!_ " Aiko apologizes, coming to a stop in front of her and pecking her on the cheek. "I'm just really excited to see Rosa!"

"And to go to mass?" Aiko's mother asks, raising a suspicious eyebrow.

" _...Sí, mamá,_ " Aiko answers a bit guiltily, hating that she was lying to her mother like this.

" _Ve_ -Go, then!" Aiko's mother tells her, waving her towards the door. But just as the teenage girl was about to leave, she adds playfully, "But if you meet any _chicos o chicas lindas_ , you bring them home so your _papá_ and I can meet them before you let them take you on any dates!"

" _Sí, mamá_!" Aiko answers, beaming as she heads out the door, her heart feeling much lighter as she skips down the front walk..

" _Mi prima favorita! Qué pasa?_ " Rosa cries, grinning as Aiko hops into the front seat next to her.

" _Nada mucho_ ," Aiko answers, shaking her head. "Just school as usual."

"You study too much, _chica_!" Rosa lovingly ruffles her hair. "You need to get out of the house and have fun more often!"

" _Lo sé, lo sé_!" Aiko agrees. "But isn't that why we're going out tonight?"

" _Maldición que sí_!" Rosa answers, laughing as she turns her key in the ignition. " _Vamos_!"

"Ooh, turn it up!" Aiko cries as she recognizes one of her favorite songs playing over the radio.

"On it!" Rosa chuckles, and they both start singing along at the top of their lungs as they take off down the street.

" We can dance in the fire _hasta que salga el sol_. Burning up with desire, _solitos tú y yo_. I'm not looking for something that's just one night. If you're ready, I'm ready to love you for the rest of your life!"

0o0

Ethel reaches her favorite nightclub around eight pm, just as it was opening for the night. Usually things didn't get really interesting until around ten, but by she was ready to just get out on the dance floor and dance all of her stress away. Plus, a couple of drinks to get her in the mood probably wouldn't hurt. Sure, she was only in high school, but her fake ID said otherwise and the bartender in this particular joint didn't ask too many questions. As long as she could put up the money, he'd give her whatever she wanted, and thanks to a little illicit bot fighting on school nights, she could easily do that.

By nine, she had enough alcohol in her to have her pleasantly floating, washing away the stress from home, and as the dance floor started to fill up, she was ready to get her night started.

For the next couple of hours, she bounced along to whatever techno songs the DJ chose to play, relishing in the feeling of getting to lose herself in this crowd of complete strangers. Everyone was just here to have a good time and escape. No one expected her to be perfect. No one thought she was a disappointment. She could just be herself, and that was the most freeing feeling in the world.

0o0

By the time they reached the club, the rest of Aiko and Rosa's cousins were already there, and they headed inside as one big group. Of course all the older cousins were too protective of Aiko to actually let her drink (although Rosa did let her take a couple sips from her strawberry daiquiri when none of the others were looking) and she had at least one of them with her at all times as a chaperone. A lot of teens might have found it smothering, but she actually felt comforted by the fact that her _primos_ were so protective of her, and it meant that she was able to enjoy her night in the club without having to worry about any dangers.

As she was sipping on her own virgin piña colada, listening to her cousins Pedro and Pablo trading witticisms, her eyes wander down the bar and spots a girl with short black and purple hair, dressed in an outfit that would have made her mother ground her for a month if she ever saw her in it. Still, despite the over-the-top rebellious look that the teen was apparently going for, she was very pretty-her almond shaped dark brown eyes were gorgeous, and Aiko could appreciate her bold taste in choosing purple lipstick. She seemed about her own age, even though it looked like she was drinking something that legally she shouldn't have had access to until she was twenty-one. Curious to find out more about the mysterious stranger and hoping that maybe she could at least get in a dance or two with her (after all, she'd come here to have fun, right?), Aiko glances over at her cousins, wondering if they'd notice if she moved just that much distance down the bar. By the time that she decides that it's safe and turns back around, however, the other girl had disappeared.

 _Caramba_ , she thinks, frowning in frustration. She'd missed her chance! Still, the girl had to be somewhere in here, right? And she couldn't have gone too far in the thirty seconds that she'd looked away. Filled with determination, the blond latina carefully slips out of her chair, making sure not to draw her cousins' attention, before hurrying off towards the dance floor in hopes of spotting her mystery crush.

0o0

Ethel could tell that she'd slightly overdone it when she put down her last shot. She was officially over-buzzed, and she knew it. Usually she could hold her liquor better than this, but maybe she'd been ordering a little too strong tonight. Well, there was nothing for it but to find some relatively quiet place to curl up and hopefully sleep this off until she was sober enough to head home.

Unfortunately, it seemed that fate had other plans. As she started off across the dance floor towards the bathrooms, suddenly a sleazy looking older guy steps into her path.

"Well, well, what's a cute little thing like you doing here all alone?" he asks, leering down at her. It was obvious that he'd had too much too drink, or else he wouldn't be hitting on someone as young as her (at least she hoped not.)

Having no patience for idiots like him, Ethel snaps, "Out of my way, loser. I have places to be."

"What's your hurry, doll?" The guy reaches down and cups her cheek in his hand and she instantly pulls away in revulsion.

"Hands off!" Ethel snaps, slapping his hands away as he tries to put them on her hips.

"C'mon, you should take it as a compliment that a guy like me is hitting on you," he answers, moving uncomfortably close, the smell of his alcohol soaked breath gagging her.

"Try that again and I will punch you into tomorrow!" Ethel growls, although she felt just a tiny bit of fear stirring in her chest as the guy backs her closer and closer to the wall-there was something so horribly wrong and yet familiar about this…'

Thirteen years old. She'd only been thirteen years old, but she could still remember every moment of it like it was yesterday.

 _"C'mon, little sis. It'll be fun."_

 _"No! Leave me alone! I-If you don't let go of me, I'll tell mom and dad!"_

 _"Like they'll believe you? Trust me, I know how things work around here. I can get away with whatever I want. When are you going to learn that?"_

 _"I hope you rot in hell!"_

 _"If I'm going down, I'm taking you with me. Now shut up before I have to gag you, you little bitch."_

 _"Please… No…"_

 _"_ I'm trying to be nice here," the guy answers, breaking GoGo out of her horrific flashback, a mean glint coming into his eyes. "But if you want to do it the hard way-"

"Leave. Me. Alone!" Ethel shouts as his lecherous gaze travels over her body, his hands reaching out to do much the same. Shit, shit, shit! When it came down to a fight, she could usually hold her own, but frozen as she was by her traumatic memories, she was doing good to still even be standing. Even if she had been on her A-game, she was backed into a corner, and there was nowhere to go. Strong as she was from working on her bike in her spare time, he was twice her size and she only had a fifty-fifty chance of actually getting out of here. Why wasn't anyone trying to help her?!

"C'mon, sweetheart, I can show you a really good time tonight," the guy leers as he presses ever closer.

Ethel was about to do the one thing she promised herself she'd never do again after learning just how ineffective it was at saving her from truly dangerous situations-scream at the top of her lungs in hopes that someone would come to her rescue-when suddenly she hears a high-pitched voice shouting, " _Quítale la manos de encima!_ " before, out of nowhere, a bright yellow platform heel hits the man squarely on the back of his head.

0o0

When Aiko had finally spotted the other girl on the dance floor, she'd initially felt her heart lifting in her chest-yes, she'd found her! But then suddenly she notices the guy talking to the other teen and it sinks back down-he was probably her boyfriend. Drat! Why did she always have the worst luck when it came to crushes? Just as she's about to turn away in defeat, however, it registers in her mind just how much older than the other teen the guy was and the rather uncomfortable look on the girl's face. Wait, was there something very wrong going on here?

She whirls back around and sees the man backing the girl into a corner and instantly she knows that this was a very bad situation. "Pablo! Pedro! Rosa!" she calls out, hoping that one of her older cousins would come to her aide. But she doesn't see any familiar faces in the crowd near her, and her heart begins to beat very quickly as panic fills her chest. What should she do? It would be dangerous to try to fight the guy on her own, but what choice did she have? Seeing no other option, she pushes through the crowd, trying to make her way over to the other girl. When she finally spots her again, the creepy guy looked like he was about to start touching her in a very inappropriate way, and every bit of feisty latina blood in Aiko's body rises to the surface.

Without even really thinking about what she was doing, she whips off one of her heels and takes aim, shouting out at the top of her lungs, " _Quítale la manos de encima!_ " before letting it fly. It was a direct hit, and it was enough to make the guy momentarily stumble away from the other girl in surprise. Taking her opening, Aiko races over, jumping onto his back and starting to beat him with her other shoe.

" _¡Hijo de puta! ¡Cómo te atreves! ¡Pudrete en el infierno! ¡Chingate_!" she screams, knowing that her mother would send her away to a convent if she could hear the language coming out of her mouth right now but not being able to bring herself to care. She didn't even realize that they were drawing a large crowd until she felt a pair of strong hands starting to pull her off of the man's back.

" _Suéltame! Suéltame_!" she demands, angrily thrashing in her captor's grip.

" _Prima, basta!_ " Aiko allows herself to relax when she recognizes the voice of her eldest cousin, Julio.

"What's going on here?" he asks, frowning as he takes in the sight of Aiko still holding her shoe in a threatening manner, the guy she had been beating with said shoe, and the extremely freaked out looking girl in the corner.

"That _puto_ was trying to take advantage of her!" Aiko answers, pointing accusingly at the creep, who was beginning to look like he was very much regretting ever coming here.

"Is that true?" Julio looks over at the girl who was still standing in the corner, seeming extremely shaken. At first she seems too afraid to move, but finally she slowly nods.

Julio turns his furious gaze on the man. "¡ _Bastardo_! How dare you try to hurt a sweet, innocent girl like that! You should be ashamed of yourself! Pedro, Palbo!" He waves to his other two cousins who had by now both arrived. "Go get the security so we can make sure this _hijo de puta_ doesn't ever try this again!"

"Right!" Pedro agrees, hurrying off to do as instructed while Pablo stays to help make sure that the creep doesn't escape.

" _Pobrecita!_ " By now Rosa had joined them, and she heads over to the corner where she lays a gentle hand on the girl's shoulder. "Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"

"H-He almost did…" the teen admits shakily before nodding over at Aiko. "But apparently heels are more of a deadly weapon than I realized…" Inside her head, though, she was making herself a promise that she would do whatever she could to make sure that a guy never, ever was able to come that close to taking advantage of her again.

"You should see mi _tía_ with _una chancla_!" Rosa chuckles. "That's where Aiko gets it from!"

"Aiko…?" the teen asks uncertainly.

" _Mi prima_ -my cousin," Rosa explains, smiling and waving Aiko over. "She's the one that saved you."

"I guess I owe you a 'thank you', then," the girl says, offering the other teen a somewhat begrudging nod.

" _No te preocupes-_ Don't worry about it!" Aiko reassures her. "I was more than happy to help. Besides, I couldn't just let that jerk take advantage of you!"

"A lot of people almost did," the other girls points out.

"Well… It was still the right thing to do!"

"I guess I can't argue with that…"

"So... " Aiko draws out the word, hoping that her cousin would get the idea and give them some privacy-she didn't, of course, grinning and watching this like it was her favorite telenovela. "Can I ask what your name is since you know mine?"

"It's Ethel," the other teen finally responds. "Although most of my friends call me 'GoGo'. I'm kind of obsessed with going fast…"

"Really? That's adorable!" Aiko giggles. "My friend, Fred, would like that-he's always giving people nicknames! He named me 'Honey Lemon' since that's my favorite drink and he says I have such a sweet personality."

"Wait, Fred? Like, Fred Lee?" GoGo's eyes go wide with surprise.

"Yeah!" Honey Lemon agrees eagerly. "Do you know him?"

"Know him? I'm stuck next to him in shop class and he's a complete and total klutz-he's almost gotten me killed five times this year!" GoGo answers. "How do you know him?"

"I take advanced Chemistry with his boyfriend, Tadashi!" Honey Lemon explains. "Wow-who knew that we'd actually have friends in common?"

"I'm not sure I'd call Fred a 'friend'," GoGo admits. "And considering we both live in this general area, it would make sense that we go to the same high school and might have run into some of the same people."

"Oh, c'mon, it's so much more fun to think that it's fate!" Honey Lemon declares. "I mean, what are the chances that we'd meet here tonight, under these circumstances, instead of any other time at school?"

"Maybe we have met at school before and just don't remember it?" GoGo hedges.

"Trust me, I would have remembered meeting you!" Honey Lemon answers with a playful grin. She was promptly rewarded by a bright pink blush appearing on the other girl's cheeks, although the other teen quickly looks away to try to hide it.

"So, I guess we should probably get heading home home," Rosa puts in, seeming to think that now was a good time for an intervention-after all, what was a telenovela without cliffhangers? -and also knowing that her aunt would ground both her and Aiko for life if they were out too much longer. "GoGo, do you have a ride?"

"Not exactly…" GoGo admits.

"Well then, I'll take give you a lift!"

"I can find my own way home-!" GoGo starts to protest roughly, but Rosa quickly cuts her off.

"I won't take 'no' for an answer! Besides, we're running kind of late, so now we'll have an excuse: that we were taking one of Aiko's friends home! Our parents can't fault us for trying to be responsible friends, right?"

"I guess that works…" GoGo agrees with a wry smile, seeming amused by the planned deception.

"C'mon, then!" Honey Lemon grins and grab the other girl's hand, not even thinking about the consequences of it until she was already starting to pull her towards the door. Was she coming on too strongly? Still, GoGo didn't seem to mind so she decides not to let go, enjoying the warm tingle in her hand where the other woman's skin connected with her own. Soon they reach Rosa's car again, and Honey Lemon elects to sit in the back with GoGo. About five minutes into the drive, the other teen falls asleep, curled contentedly up against Honey Lemon who certainly wasn't complaining. It's almost a shame when they reach the address that GoGo had given them, but she forces herself to do the responsible thing and gently shake her new friend awake.

"GoGo? GoGo," she whispers, gently taking her by the shoulder.

"Mm?" GoGo squints her eyes open, seeming slightly disoriented.

"We're at your house," Honey Lemon tells her gently.

"Oh…" GoGo blinks owlishly at her for a moment before finally nodding and reaching for her bag. Honey Lemon had seen it lying on the floor and started reaching for it as well, and they end up accidentally connecting as they both bend down, first forehead connecting with chin and then, as they try to straighten up, their lips softly grazing.

Within moments GoGo is fully awake again, a fiery sort of raspberry taste on her lips as she quickly pulls away, blushing bright red. "S-Sorry, I didn't mean too…" she mumbles, feeling an unfamiliar heat coursing its way through her body. But moments later her apology is interrupted by Honey Lemon's musical laugh.

"It's alright," the blond reassures her with a playful wink as she hands her her backpack. "I'll see you in school on Monday-or, maybe sooner?" she adds, and GoGo suddenly finds a small piece of paper being pressed into her hand.

"C'mon, Aiko, we have to get going before we are actually grounded for life!" Rosa reminds her. "You can flirt later!"

Wait, Honey Lemon was flirting with her? GoGo feels her heart oddly speed up ever so slightly as she meets the other woman's gaze.

"Call me," Honey Lemon mouths to her before grinning and waving as her cousin takes off down the street.

For a moment, GoGo just stands there, watching them go, trying to convince herself that everything that had just happened wasn't just some very detailed dream that she was finally waking up from. But then she looks down at the crumpled piece of pink paper in her hand, covered in ridiculously loopy handwriting of an even brighter pink, and she can't help but grin. It hadn't been a dream. It had been real. And maybe, just maybe, this was a sign that all of reality didn't have to royally suck, and that there was a possibility for a happy ending for her after all.

0o0

Song that inspired this fic:

 _Take a Hint_ by Victrious

Songs used in this fic (in order of appearance):

 _Dollhouse_ by Melanie Martinez  
 _Muévelo_ by Sofia Reyes ft Wisin  
 _Conmigo [Rest of Your Life]_ by Sofia Reyes


End file.
